Two brothers found guilty of committing visa fraud in November 2015 were sentenced to serve 87 months in federal prison. This stems from a lengthy investigation into the actions of Atul and Jay Nanda using their corporation, Dibon Solutions, to recruit foreign workers with specialized expertise and turning them into a cheap form of labor. The brothers would sponsor the workers’ H-1B visa with the notion that they would work at Dibon headquarters located in Texas.
Upon their arrival, the foreign worker would find that no such position existed and were at the mercy of what was offered to them as an alternative. This goes against the requirements of an H-1B visa as it is mandatory for any employer to provide the worker with a full-time position and be paid an annual salary. The brothers would then profit from these workers by outsourcing them to a third-party company for specific projects and charge a significant rate. These actions would allow Dibon to incur fewer costs as well as higher profits especially when the workers were not assigned to a project.
It was also discovered that the Nanda brothers were requiring the visa candidates to pay for the processing fees associated with the visa application which by law the company is required to pay. They attempted to hide this by having them pay the company directly with cash or check made out to “Dibon Training Center”.
The conduct of Atul and Jay Nanda goes against everything the H-1B visa program stands for. The foreign workers were turned into a cheap form of labor for the company’s profit. This case showed how someone can turn an effective tool into a fraudulent one at the expense of others.
